UK

The term ‘pop art’ normally conjures up images of colourful and ‘hip’ artworks from the 1950s-60s.

In August and September 2021 London gallery Whitford Fine Art held an exhibition titled Sand Casts devoted to a British pop artist prominent in the Swinging Sixties who had renewed his successful career in the Nineties.

James Cohen is one of the dealers standing at LARTA which opens this week in Battersea Evolution on the mezzanine of the Decorative Antiques and Textiles Fair.

While London gun-makers featured heavily – and lucratively – at Gavin Gardiner’s (25% buyer’s premium) auction of Modern & Vintage Sporting Guns on December 14, provincial makers also got a look in.

Published by John Newbery c.1770, 'A Little Pretty Pocket Book…' and its companion 'Little Song Book' is a very small work indeed at little more than 3in (7.5cm) tall, but the latter includes some 54 woodcut illustrations and accompanying verses related to children’s games and pastimes.

Birmingham-born Roy Elvis (1944- 2022) inherited his family interest in antiques and started collecting furniture and decorative arts from an early age.

The pen and wash drawing of three men and a barrel by Josef Herman (1911-2000) shown above is on offer at Albany Gallery’s upcoming exhibition for £500.

The visit of ‘Revolutionary Wars’ hero Gilbert du Motler, the Marquis of Lafayette, to the US in 1824 spawned a large number of commemoratives.

A remarkable collection of dollhouses, dollhouse furniture and juvenilia was sold in London towards the end of 2022.

Right at the top of the price lists for a London sale of a second portion of the library of Henry Rogers Broughton, 2nd Earl Fairhaven, was a lot that presented a handsomely bound collection of 15 very fine watercolour on vellum drawings of flowers.

A pair of militaria highlights related to Irish regiments that came up in recent auctions.

Roman dodecahedra continue to baffle after more than two-and-a-half centuries of study.

The auction at Dominic Winter (20% buyer’s premium) on December 15 included two presentation first editions by Sylvia Plath.

A rare Second World War helmet worn by members of a little-known unit of the UK home front comes for sale at Sworders on February 7.

Last week ice descended once again on London where Gladwell & Patterson, celebrating its 275th anniversary, is offerings an appropriately wintry scene.

A selection of militaria with solid Sussex interest appeared at Lewes saleroom Wallis & Wallis (22% buyer’s premium).

Thousands of items are available to buy from dealers online. Here we pick out one that caught our eye this week.

Specialist buyers turn out in force to bid for rusty ‘warts and all’ weapons amassed by dealer-collector